Moments
by TheBlurredLine23
Summary: "This is the kind of thing we're fighting for… That we can share little moments like this." Taiream, gift for CandiCindy. /aged-up AU/


_A/N: What? Blurry's not dead? Holy smokes._

 _A lot has changed for me in the past year and a half. In that time, I've continued to write... just nothing ready for posting yet. Soon, soon._

 _I haven't written romance in five years, but I made an exception for my dear friend, CandiCindy. Enjoy, love._

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 _Disclaimer: Characters are aged up here. This fic does not fit anywhere in my normal canon and does not connect to my other fics. And, of course, I don't own Sonic the Hedgehog or any affiliated characters._

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 **Moments**

 _by TheBlurredLine23_

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 _ **Part 1: Crush**_

The feeling starts slowly—so slowly that Tails doesn't even realize it that it exists for a long time. The moments spent with Cream add up to something reminiscent of spending long hours at the computer adding bits and pieces of code long into the night. That's how friendship works, according to him, perhaps influenced by the fact that Sonic was his first _best_ friend, and despite their fast-forming and tight bond, it's taken him years to unlock the hedgehog's secrets.

But then he begins to notice little things about Cream—her sweet smile upon seeing him, the way she laughs when he does, the way she's been growing out her hair a little bit more. It is here he begins to realize the faintest inklings of _something else_ , and this puzzles him to no end.

It's late at night, two weeks after his fifteenth birthday, while he's lying in bed fiddling with his latest upgrade to the Miles Electric, when he remembers that he used to watch Sonic the same way.

Just like code and fitting gears into the machine in his hands, all of a sudden, he has a breakthrough—the thought of being star struck for Cream, which leads to another thought that he wants to hold her in his arms, to still another thought of what if—

Before long, his mind is completely off the machine and he briefly sets the Miles Electric to the side, hardly daring to breathe.

He wants to rush out now and tell somebody—not Cream, no, not for a long time, he reasons, but someone else. Sonic, namely. But then he remembers it's two in the morning and unless the hedgehog is up for a midnight stroll or composing session, Sonic probably won't remember a word Tails says. So he picks up the Miles Electric again, goes into his notes, and starts a "new project."

" _I have come to the sudden realization that my feelings for Cream may be different from expected…"_

* * *

 _ **Part 2: Brother**_

In the morning, he finds Sonic easily enough; the twenty-one-year-old is in the living room sitting in his old, faded green rocking chair, the one he uses to think when he's cooped up inside or he's just come back from a run. His guitar lays in his lap, and the hedgehog hums idly while he strums.

"Morning, kiddo," Sonic says without looking up, knowing his brother's gentle footfalls as well as his own.

"Hey, Sonic."

But Tails stops short there, because his thoughts are quickly catching up to him and ensnaring him in doubt. So he stands there dumbly as Sonic continues to strum and the toaster pops up another two slices of bread in the adjacent kitchen.

"The tension's killing me," Sonic mumbles, half to himself and half to the fox still standing in front of him, eliciting a nervous laugh from the latter.

"I… I've been meaning to ask… What do you know about love?"

Sonic's brow scrunches in confusion, mind leaping into action with a processing speed greater than almost anyone Tails knows. "What do you—"

Their eyes lock for a moment, and Tails swears he sees a shadow of _something_ cross Sonic's face. He isn't sure what it is, but for a split second there's something like pain, as if Sonic has known a day like this would come but still hoped it wouldn't anyway.

Then it's gone, slipping back into the trademark grin, though it seems slightly less confident now than usual.

"I know more about the Sol Emeralds than that kind of love, bud." He seems almost tired when he picks up strumming again. "Better luck asking Amy or Vanilla."

Tails nods as he shuffles into the kitchen, thoughts bubbling up like water in the kettle.

* * *

 _ **Part 3: Plans**_

"That's so _ADORABLE!_ "

Tails flinches, ears turning back in pain. "I think it's more adorable if I keep my hearing, thanks."

Amy giggles. "You have to admit, keeping passionate love a secret _is_ pretty cute."

"You make no secret about _your_ love," Tails mutters to himself.

"I _heard_ that," the eighteen-year-old retorts, but she only winks at him in good humor. "So, you want my help planning a date, huh?"

"Nothing too over-the-top, please."

"Of course not."

But she's already pacing around the kitchen, and Tails can't help but smile at how despite the intervening years and the maturity with age, Amy is much the same as ever.

* * *

The plans they make together are far simpler than those on the blueprints on Tails's desk, but still his mind swirls as they consider the location, the food, the way he should try to present himself. Tails wonders if this is Amy living vicariously through him and Cream. Still, her advice is fairly solid, and he appreciates her aid, for merely thinking about this makes his tongue twist itself into knots.

They're discussing plans for Tails's "confession" when Amy suddenly looks up and looks Tails right in both eyes.

"You know you don't have to follow any of this, right?"

Tails blinks. "I… Sure, but why do you say that all of a sudden?"

"Ah, well…" Amy blushes slightly, looking down at the page again. "I… I figure it's better to… be yourself than pretend for her sake."

This sounds a lot like something Sonic would say, and Tails suspects that these were, in fact, the words Sonic himself had used when he'd had that long "discussion" with Amy last year on the porch.

"I'll… keep that in mind. Thanks, Amy."

* * *

 _ **Part 4: Remember**_

His hands are quivering on the yolk of the Tornado-1. He doesn't dare to look back at the thirteen-year-old sitting right behind him, in the passenger seat, fearing that his face will turn as red as Knuckles.

"So where are we going, anyway?"

"You'll see," Tails says vaguely, but he knows Cream is smiling.

They soar over hills, lakes, rivers, rocks... the zones pass by quickly, and for a moment, Tails forgets his tremors. He enjoys flying himself immensely—it gives him pride, because it helped him to prove the bullies wrong all those years ago. But there's something else about flying a plane... Something about having built this one with his own hands, enjoying the scenery flying by faster than he'd ever see it traveling by tail.

He remembers—keep it simple. And so he does for this flight, cruising by just high enough to pass over the tops of the trees. No tricks this time, no flips, and exhilarated yells from his daredevil brother. Just him, Cream, and the wind in their faces.

After some minutes, he begins the descent over the coast, doing his best to lower them gently. He lands just right—a miracle, considering how his mind is all over the place now. He hops out of the plane and then turns back to help Cream out, only to see her already hopping to the ground from the lower wing. She looks at him curiously, and they stand there awkwardly for a moment before she says, "Thanks anyway," and begins to laugh. Then he laughs, because he loves the sound of her voice ringing in the air.

"Come on," he finally says. "I... uh, wanna show you something."

He doesn't intend to, but he holds his hand out. She takes it, and something warm rises to his face.

* * *

They walk for a while into the forest. They're still holding hands, and every so often he sneaks a glance back as he leads her forward. Her face is curious, but bright.

"Have you been here before, Tails?"

"Mm-hm." He laughs. "Back where we landed… I crash-landed here with Sonic, actually, the first time I came."

"Really? You, crashing a plane?"

"Heh heh, yeah," he says, rubbing the back of his head with his free hand. "It was about eight years ago now. We were coming back after fighting Eggman… Sonic was already injured, so I was freaking out. While I was busy fixing the plane and looking for bandages, Sonic had wandered off somewhere."

"Of course he did." She grins while shaking her head.

He returns the grin. "So I dropped all my tools and started running. I don't remember how long I was looking for him… Just that it felt too long, and I was getting more worried by the minute.

"I found him in here."

She raises her brows—they've come to what appears to be a dead end, with thick foliage blocking their path.

"Well… Not _here_ , here." He releases her hand—the air feels oddly cold without it—and approaches a patch of bushes. He kneels, pushing a few of the branches aside to reveal a low tunnel, about two feet high. "It's not very long, but you'll have to crawl to get through… I'll go first." So saying, he gets down on his hands and knees and crawls through the hole.

It only takes him a moment to crawl through to the clearing, but in that time, he can feel his palms start to sweat again. _Oh Chaos._ He closes his eyes and takes another moment to just sit on the other side of the bush, running his fingers through his fringe again and again.

" _Better to be yourself than pretend for her sake."_

He opens his eyes. Not much has changed since his last visit, last year—the late afternoon sun streams through the leaves, lighting the flowers and grass below so that they seem to glow at the edges. Feral animals, birds, and insects move about softly, as if not wishing to disturb the familiar gentle Chaos music in the air.

" _Tails?"_

He takes a deep breath.

"Sorry. You can come across now."

He lifts the branches on his side, and a moment later, Cream crawls through. "I was beginning to think you'd forgotten about me," she jokes.

"I could never forget about you," he mumbles without thinking. His eyes widen and he blushes as he realizes what he said, but Cream appears to be too busy looking about to have noticed.

"It's beautiful here," she murmurs, and Tails can't help but smile at the wonder in her eyes.

"I found Sonic here because I heard his voice from the other side." He stands, moving towards a lone tree in the center of the glade and sitting, legs crossed, at its base. Cream gets up and does the same, her arm brushing against his to make it tingle.

"Here I am, panicking, and he's got this serene look on his face, as if he'd just come here on a stroll. Blaze would say he looked like he was aligned with the universe."

Cream nods.

"He just looks at me like this, and he says, 'It's all right, kiddo. You don't need to be sorry…This is the kind of thing we're fighting for… That we can share little moments like this.'

"'So long as we have that, what does it matter what happens along the way?'"

For some moments, both of them are silent, listening to the sounds of the forest.

"Since then, I've come back several times. Sometimes with Sonic, other times just by myself… I have good memories of this place."

She leans her head on his shoulder, one hand taking his.

"Thanks for letting me be one of them."

He squeezes her hand.

" _Of course."_

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 _A/N: What did you think of this? Leave me a review please!_


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